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Politics : Don't Blame Me, I Voted For Kerry -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: stockman_scott who wrote (512)	2/2/2004 12:52:55 PM
From: Skywatcher	Respond to of 81568

did he use good judgement EVER in his stupid life???? Bush Delivers $2.4-Trillion Budget to Congress By Janet Hook, Times Staff Writer WASHINGTON — President Bush unveiled a $2.4-trillion election year budget today that commits his administration to stringent new spending limits, but still embraces deficit spending for years to come. The budget is designed to put the government on the path to reducing this year's $521 billion deficit by more than half over the next five years, through a combination of economic growth and spending cuts in domestic programs such as agriculture, small business and environmental protection. "Like America itself the federal budget has faced extraordinary challenges in recent years," said Bush's budget director, Joshua Bolten. He called the deficit "undesirable and unwelcome." "With Congress' help we will bring it down," he said. But many of the spending cuts Bush proposes — including the complete elimination of 65 programs — face tough sledding in Congress, where even Republicans say it is unrealistic to expect lawmakers to squeeze such popular programs in an election year. "It is all fantasy," said a senior House Republican aide. "It's hard to do when members have expectations for home projects, especially in an election year." What's more, the budget understates likely future deficits because it does not include funding for several initiatives that administration and congressional officials expect or hope to be enacted. For example, it includes no funding for ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan — an expense that Bolten said could run around $50 billion in 2005. It also makes no provision for Bush's idea of overhauling the Social Security program to allow people to invest part of their payroll taxes in individual investment accounts. Democrats criticized the budget for those glaring omissions, saying it undercut Bush's claim to be serious about reducing the deficit. "This budget is neither credible nor realistic because it omits so many costly items," said Rep. John Spratt (D-S.C.), ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee. But Bush and his Republican allies say that some deficit spending is justified at a time when the United States is still engaged in military operations and struggling to combat global terrorism. "Our nation remains at war," Bush said in his formal budget message. "This nation has committed itself to the long war against terror. And we will see that war to its inevitable conclusion: the destruction of the terrorists." THIS DOESN"T INCLUDE THE WAR IN IRAQ~!!!!!! CC